The Surprises in the Sand
by bamboo72498
Summary: The Squints summer at the beach. Fun and Adventure ensues. My response to weeks 4 and 5 of the Bonesology Summer Challenge.
1. Chapter 1

"Booth! Stop. You're not supposed to lift anything heavy yet!" Brennan scolds, taking the filled suitcase her husband had just tried to lift off their bed out of his hands, setting it on the floor herself.

"Bones, it's fine. It's not even heavy!"

"I just don't want you to hurt yourself. You're still recovering."

"I know. But you gotta give me something! I'm going crazy just sitting around here all day!" He was whining now, head thrown back.

She smiles at his childish behavior, and after a moment relents. "Alright. Will you take this to the front door with the others so we can start putting them into the car?"

"You got it," Booth smiles, more than ready to help. Bag in hand, he starts for the pile of their other stuff but is stopped short at their bedroom door. Christine stands there, backpack over her shoulders, arms laden with her precious stuffed animals.

"Woah! You have enough there?" Booth chuckles.

"Christine! What did I tell you about your animals?"

"But they're going to get lonely!" Christine argues. "I can't leave them here all alone!"

"They're not gonna be lonely!" Booth starts, leaning down to look in his daughter's eyes. "They'll have each other and all your other toys and your brother's toys. They'll have lots of fun!"

"But they won't get to see the beach," Christine's face falls.

"You'll tell them all about it when you get home. And I'm sure we can bring back some shells to show them."

Christine smiles at that, perking up a bit. "Really?"

"Really. But your mom is right. We don't have enough room for all of them in the car. So go pick a couple real quick, okay? Everyone is going to be here soon."

"Okay," Christine says, turning back for her bedroom.

And by everyone, Booth almost truly meant everyone. Their entire family (minus Parker who had just gone back to school after term break), including Max, the Hodgins family, Wendell and his girlfriend Andi, even Daisy and her son would be coming for a few days; Cam had been invited to come (as Angela put it, a few weeks at the beach was the perfect post-break-up cure.), but had politely declined.

Brennan had rented them a house near the beach; The Jersey Shore to be exact. It was going to be two weeks of sun, fun, family, and relaxation. Just what the doctor had ordered.

Booth had just dropped the bag on the pile and was turning back to the bedroom to grab another when the doorbell rang.

"Hey!" Hodgins called, shaking Booth's hand and slapping him lightly on the back as he stepped inside, Angela and Michael Vincent right behind. "You guys ready?"

"Does it look like it?" Booth growled, gesturing around to the complete disarray of their home.

"Well, do you need some help?" Hodgins asks.

"Yeah, you can start loading the car," Booth says, tossing Jack his keys and turning down the hallway to the living room where his son sits, screaming for attention. While her husband heads back outside to start helping, Angela goes to check on her friend.

"Hey, sweetie! You almost ready to go?"

"I'm afraid this was a much bigger undertaking than I originally thought," Brennan says, putting her clothes just so into her suitcase.

"Yeah, tell me about it," Angela agrees. "Getting out of the house with one kid was hard enough. I can't imagine doing it with two."

"And it's not only the kids' things. It's all the other stuff. Food, beach chairs, toys."

"Well there are stores there, you remember that right? It's not like we're going out into the Boonies for a month. Whatever you forget we can just run to Walmart and pick it up," Angela smiles.

"Yes," Brennan breaths, nodding. "You are right. I shouldn't be worrying this much."

"No, you shouldn't. Vacation is supposed to be relaxing!"

"Yes, it is," Brennan smiles, zipping up her suitcase and sets it on the floor. She links arms with Angela and the two girls leave the bedroom together, smiling. She leaves her bag in the dwindling pile of their stuff and joins the kids in the living room.

Michael and Christine are making funny faces at Hank to keep him happy, and the infant giggles at them and tries to copy their expressions. The two moms laugh at their kids, and Angela secretly snaps a few pictures of them on her phone.

"Okay!" Booth announces. "The doors are locked, I'm going to set the alarm right before we leave. The key is in the mailbox, I left Hayden a note about what he needs to do, and I gave him the WiFi code in case he wants to stay and hang out," he recaps, talking about the neighborhood kid who was house sitting for them.

"I guess that's everything," Brennan nods.

"Alright," Angeal says, clapping her hands. "Let's head out!"

And ten minutes later, after finishing packing the car and loading everyone up, they were on the road.

[] []

Their trip down to the shore included to stops. One pretty early on to top off on gas, and another about ninety minutes in because poor Michael got car sick and needed to get cleaned up. And trying to find Children's Dramamine in a tiny town in the middle of nowhere Maryland, was something none of the adults ever imagined they would have to do. But they made it, a little behind schedule, mostly all in one piece.

"Wow!" Angela gasps as Brennan turns the key in the lock and opens the front door to their rental house.

They are met with a long staircase that led upstairs, to the left, the living room took up the entire side. A desk and chair were tucked into a corner next to an armchair and ottoman. There was a long sectional sofa and an entertainment center that held a large television set. To the right of the stairs were the kitchen and dining area. And at the back of the house was a half bathroom, the laundry room, and the Master Bedroom, which Brennan and Booth quickly claim.

There are three more bedrooms upstairs: the one right at the top of the stairs holds two sets of bunk beds, where all the kids would be sleeping, down the hallway to the right was a bathroom and across from it was another bedroom with two double beds, and to the left of the kids' room, tucked away into a semi-quiet corner was the fourth bedroom, where Jack and Angela would be sleeping, with its own bathroom and access to the second story deck that wrapped around three sides of the house. And right next to the fourth bedroom was the main access to the deck where a ping-pong table, bar area, and lounge chairs and a couch and a fire pit all sat.

"Come on, if we all help, we can get unpacked faster and head down to the beach!" Angela says, steering her son and niece back outside to help unload the car their dads had so meticulously packed, and the rest of the adults were soon to follow.


	2. Chapter 2

Their first lunch at the beach was at this tiny restaurant right on the boardwalk that claimed to have 'The Best Crab Cakes This Side of the Mississippi'.

They did not.

But, the atmosphere and excellent staff nearly made up for that fact. Nearly.

"Thirteen dollars for some crappy crab and fries? That is damn near theft, if you ask me!" Booth grumbled as they walked down the boardwalk after finishing their food. "'Best Crab Cakes, my ass!"

"Booth, calm down. It's really not that big of a deal," Brennan says, hoisting Hank higher onto her hip.

"Not a big deal? Bones! These people are running some kind of scam! Charging outrageous amounts of money for crappy food. How is that not a big deal?"

"It was an experience; isn't that what you always say? Besides I had a feeling the food served here would not be very enjoyable. And not just because I'm a vegetarian. Anthropologically, tourist areas a known to have both very good and very bad eating establishments. Obviously, we ate at a place on the 'bad' end of the spectrum."

"No, no no!" Booth says, offended. "You're not using Anthropology on this one! This right here," he says, waving their check around, "is not some science lesson for you and your Squints! This is unreasonable! And I won't stand for it!."

Their conversation is cut short when Christine doubles back to them from where she had gone ahead with her aunt, uncle, and cousin.

"Mommy! Daddy! Michael is getting his face painted! Can I get mine painted, too?"

"I don't know, sweetheart. If you get your face painted and then go into the ocean, the paint will wash off very quickly and you won't get to enjoy it for very long," Brennan says, trying to sway her daughter against getting her face painted.

"Of course you can, Monkey!" Booth smiles. "Go pick out what you want, we're right behind you!" He smiles, watching Christine rush off, not noticing the death glare his wife is giving him.

"Booth, why did you give Christien permission? I was trying to explain the consequences if she were to play in the water right after getting paint applied to her face."

"Because we're on vacation, Bones! And like you said: it's an experience. If Christine wants to get her face painted and the jump in the waves right away, then she should."

"So you're willing to waste ten dollars for our daughter to have her face painted but not on lunch for us?" Brennan asks, calling Booth out on his earlier behavior.

"Yes, I am. One will make our baby girl happy, and the other set me back thirty bucks! And probably gave us all food poisoning!" Booth pauses and knocks on the wooden bench next to him, canceling out the negative energy from the superstition.

"I still don't see how knocking on something made of wood will keep something bad that you said from happening," Brennan says, shaking her head.

"Because once you say it, it's out in the universe, and you gotta do it to keep the universe happy!"

"Daddy! I want this one!" Christine gets their attention, pointing to the pattern she wants.

"You got it, baby!" Booth smiles, lifting her onto the chair in front of the artist. Michael is almost done with his half-face Spiderman mask, and once her hair gets pulled back out of her face, the artist gets started on Christine's half butterfly mask.

[] []

Waves crash onto the shore, the mid-afternoon sun is bright and makes them all squint against the glare of the sand. While the adults stake out their spot, Michael and Christine rush down to the water and start jumping in the waves. Christine turns cartwheels and backflips, and squeals happily when the water splashes her.

"Can we just stay here forever?" Angela, who is leaning back against her husband on their beach towel, asks.

"I wouldn't be opposed to that," Hodgins shrugs.

"I agree, this is already very enjoyable and relaxing," Brennan says.

"Do you guys not remember the last time we decided to move away and leave Cam alone?" Booth, trying to be the smart one, asks.

"Oh. yeah," Angela says. "Right." They all laugh at that, settling back into a comfortable silence.

"Christine! Michael! Stay where we can see you!" Brennan calls out to the kids when they get too far away from them.

And that is how they spend the next nearly two hours: the kids playing in the waves, the adults joining them on occasion but mostly lying on the towels, and baby Hank spends most of the time sleeping on his dad's chest.

By the time Hank wakes up, Hodgins has taken the big kids down the beach to look for shells and other treasures, Booth has fallen asleep, his hat pulled low over his face, and Angela and Brennan are nose deep in their phones, reading and playing on social media. When Brennan's phone chimes, Angela looks up for a moment but then goes back to scrolling through Instagram.

"My dad is here, I should probably let him into the house," Brennan says, standing up.

"Yeah, go. We'll be okay here," Angela nods.

"Oh! You're awake!" Brennan says, picking Hank up off Booth's body, and her husband doesn't even flinch. "Come on, buddy. Let's go say hello to grandpa. We'll see you back at the house," she tells Angela.

"Okay, bye!"

Ten minutes later, Michael rushes up the sand to their towels and falls onto his mom's feet, happily waving the bag full of treasures around for her to see. Christine does the same to her dad, none too gently waking him up.

"Wow! What did you find?" Angela asks, enthusiastic, slipping her phone into her bag.

"A rock shaped like a heart, look!" her son shouts, pulling out the rock.

"Wow! That's awesome!"

"Hey! Where did Brennan go?" Hodgins asks, finally reaching them and sitting down with his wife and son.

"She had to let Max into the house, Angela explains. "You ready to go?" The question was directed at Hodgins, but Michael chimes in.

"Can we jump in the waves one more time?"

"Yeah. Two more minutes, then it's time to go." the kids leave their treasures and race back to the water.

[] []

"Christine! Christine!" Michael hisses, trying to get his cousin's attention. When she doesn't respond, he resorts to throwing a pillow across the room to where she's laying on the other top bunk. They were supposed to be having quiet time before bed, but that obviously wasn't going well.

"Ow! What?" she asks, offended to be hit and interrupted from reading her new book.

"Look what was laying on my bed when we came in."

"It was their first time really spending time in their room and exploring. Because if they had, Michael and Christine would have noticed that the blue envelope had been laying on the top bunk Michael had claimed all summer going unnoticed until just that moment.

"What is it?" Christien asks, sitting up, now curious.

"I don't know," he says, waving the envelope around.

"Who's it from?"

"I don't know!"

"Well open it!"

"Should I?"

"Yes, it was on your bed."

"I don't know, Christine! What if it wasn't for us? What if we get in trouble?" She hops down, crosses the room and joins Michael.

"Open it!"


	3. Chapter 3

"Open it!" Christine shouts and then slaps her hand over her mouth and darts her head towards the closed door, scared that an adult might come check on them.

"Be quiet! You're gonna get us in trouble!" Michael hisses at her.

"I'm sorry, I'm just really excited! Open it, already!"

"Okay." And Michael rips open the envelope. The first thing that falls out is a black keychain, then a pencil and a sheet of stickers, and a few sheets of folded paper come out. He unfolds the papers and furrows his brow at the note written on the top page. He shows it to his cousin, who is pulling on his arm to see.

"What does it say?" Christine asks, scooting closer to read over Michael's shoulder. He takes a breath and starts to read.

 _Hello._

 _If you're reading this, it means you have been chosen to join the ranks of The Future Sweaters. TFS is an exclusive club started decades ago by the girls living in this house. Aimed at having fun, spreading goodness around the city and going on adventures, TFS has been passed on through many, many years and people._

 _As we are getting too old to be in this club, it is time to pass it on. That is where you come in._

 _In order to become official members, you first must complete the challenge. Hidden all over this house and the boardwalk, are clues and challenges you must complete. When you complete a challenge or find a new clue, report to the candy store and ask for Frankie. Tell him you're with TFS and he'll know what to do. Use the tools we gave you, your brains and the world around you to help. Have fun, be safe._

 _Signed,_

 _Dana and Savvy._

The two cousins looked at each other, lost for words.

"Whoa," Michael sighs. "We're like the Avengers!"

"We're important," Christine agrees. "There's another page! Look!" This time, it's Christine who reads.

 _Find your first challenge in a place where clothes and coats hang and can be closed up tight._

"I think I know where that is," Christine says, scooting off the bed and climbing down the ladder. She walks the three steps to the closet in their room and flips on the light.

"Look everywhere, it might be hidden good," Michel says, sitting up tall to try and see.

"I am! I can't find it!"

Michael hops down and goes to her. "Here, let me look." He looks all over but still comes up empty. "It's not here," his face falls.

"Let' try one more time, I think I have an idea. Get down." Once Michael is on all fours, Christine stands on his back to get taller. "The note said to use our brains, and it was written by older girls, right? So they must be taller than us."

"Good idea," Michael nods. "But can you hurry? You're heavy."

"Stop whining! I think I found it!" The clue was taped under the shelf above the clothes rod, a place kids Christine and Michael's size probably wouldn't have found, Christine pulls it down and steps off her cousin step stool. It's the same blue envelope as their first letter, and she wastes no time in ripping it open.

 _You found it! See, that wasn't so hard. Keep going! You're one step closer to the end._

 _Your first challenge is below._

 _But before that, we have one last rule: You can only tell one (1) adult about this._

 _For you first challenge: find, and take pictures of these things on the beach: sunglasses, a tie-dye towel, an umbrella, a shovel, and pail. Bring your pictures_ _in to Frankie for the next envelope._

The cousins didn't have a chance to discuss their challenge as a knock came at their door and they rushed to get back into bed.

"Come in!" Christine says.

"What are you two doing?" Angela asks, entering.

"Just playing," Michael tells her with a shrug.

"Okay. Don't stay up too late, okay?"

"Okay. love you, Momma," Michael says, leaning over to kiss and hug his mom.

"Love you, too, buddy. Dad says he loves you, too."

"Night, Auntie Angela," Christine says.

"Good night, sweetheart," Angela says, giving her goddaughter a hug and kiss. "Love you."

"Love you, too."

"Your mom and dad will be in in a minute, okay?"

"Okay." And with one last look, Angela leaves, pulling the door to but not closed.

"We could tell your mom about it!" Christine says, turning to look at her cousin.

"No, she'd blab to my dad and your mom. And the rule was only one grown-up can know."

"Yeah," Christine says, starting to think of what adult they could trust.

Booth comes in next to say goodnight, kissing his daughter and giving her cousin a quick hug.

"Night, Monkey. Love you."

"Love you, too, Daddy," Christine smiles. "Night, Mommy!" she calls out to her mom, who was attending to her younger brother. Booth laughs and ruffles her hair before going to the door.

"Don't stay up much longer, okay you two? I know we're on vacation, but you still need sleep."

"Okay," the kids reply. Booth smiles and closes the door with a click.

Sure that no one else was going to come in, Michael and Christien turn to each other in the dark.

"How are we gonna sneak away tomorrow to do the challenge?" she asks.

"We'll find a way. And we can take pictures on my iPod," he says, holding up the thin device.

"Good. What about my grandpa? We can trust him; he won't blab if we tell him not to."

"Maybe," Michael yawns. "We can ask him tomorrow."

"Okay." And they roll over and soon are asleep.

[] []

With the kids tucked in for the night, the parents (minus Max who had gone out to 'see the sights', whatever that meant), decided to have some fun. The house they were renting came with a game system so they gathered drinks and snacks and turned on Mario Cart.

"Okay," Booth says, taking a swig from his beer. "So we all know the rules, right? You die, you drink; you hit a trap, you drink. Loser has to do two shots."

"Yup," Brennan nods.

"It's going down," Hodgins says, bumping his wife's shoulder.

"Oh it's on," Angela retorts. "Hit play, Booth."

And the game begins.

Race one is rough with everyone getting back into the game and getting used to how sensitive the controllers are. They all end up having to take multiple drinks and in the end, Angela loses and is forced to take her shots.

Race two is better and is where the fighting and smack talk officially starts.

"Get him, Sweetie!"

"Ange, if you don't move, I swear I'm gonna hit you!"

"Not a chance, babe!"

"Booth! Stop! That is not fair!"

"Bones, this is Mario Cart! All bets are off."

"Ha! Drink."

"No! No!"

The race ends with Brennan taking shots and Booth proudly gloating at his win.

"I'm going to get you back," Brennan says, setting her jaw and picking up her controller again/ She randomizes their track options and they end up with the dreaded Rainbow Road.

"No!" They all shout. It was not going to end well.

They spend the rest of the night laughing and playing and enjoying each other's company. And they all go to bed happy.


End file.
